I read on Hamasaki's elist about Grainger ecommerce screwup

Today on Cory Hamasaki's onelist someone (who claimed to work for Grainger in the ecommerce division) claimed to hear of major screwups there. He posted links to a financial forum that also had some info. The funny thing though was that he was someone who had never posted before. There are about 650 people on that list, but most just lurk. I will try to cut and paste later (unless someone beats me to it), I have to run now... If this rumor is true, it makes you wonder about other companies...?

Answers

Our local Coast to Coast hardware store manager informed me that they
are merging with Grainger. I was ecstatic, for myself and for where I
work. Maysville is kinda off the beaten cow trail, and getting
hydraulic fittings is difficult.

Anyways, I go in there last week to get some hardware for my tinfoil
EMP shielded solar panels, and asked how that was progressing. He
informed me that it was "going very badly" and that they as
yet "couldn't order anything". Shipmments are being 'enscrewed' up
and lost, and the situation looked hopeless.

That's really discouraging, especially if TEOTWAWKI holds off for a
while, since I can always find what I need in The Big Red Book. My
manager bud is going to keep me informed, so I'll keeps ya posted.

W.W. Grainger Inc., a distributor of compressors, pumps,and hand
tools, warned yesterday that its fourth-quarter earnings might be as
much as 45 percent less than estimates because of higher costs and
inventory problems. The company had been expected to earn 54 cents a
share, according to analysts polled by First Call/Thomson
Financial.

W.W. Grainger, which sells more than 550,000 repair and maintenance
items, said it experienced slowdowns and had had problems processing
transactions during the quarter. It also had trouble keeping track of
inventory because of a resource planning system it installed in 1999.
The company said it had higher employee compensation costs because of
the new system. W.W. Grainger shares fell 68.75 cents each, to
$44.375.

Grainger, a big distributor of industrial supplies, has
drawn high marks for its successful early adoption of
Internet-based sales. But it dismayed investors Friday
by
disclosing fourth-quarter earnings will come in well
short of estimates because of computer troubles.
Grainger said earnings were hurt by a downward
adjustment of its inventory on hand, though it didn't
provide specifics of the adjustment.

Grainger began installing the ERP
software in the second half of 1998
and completed the changeover in
November 1999. "As a result of
problems with the installation," the
company said Friday, Grainger has experienced
"substantial systems and transaction-processing
disruptions" that hampered the distributor's
order-handling systems.

The problems pinched second- and third-quarter profit
in
addition to hurting results in the fourth quarter. But
the
jarring inventory mix-up that the company's annual
inventory review uncovered during the fourth quarter
was an indirect result of the order system's troubles:
The
system didn't perform certain costing procedures
properly, and inventory-control measures were thrown
into disarray.

Per-share earnings for the recently ended quarter,
Grainger warned, may be as low as 30 cents, rather than
the 54-cent-a-share First Call/Thomson Financial
consensus. Grainger shares fell sharply Friday morning
but recovered as the market surged. At 4 p.m., Grainger
shares were down 75 cents at $44.3125 on the New
York Stock Exchange.

Grainger's ambitious new system is built around
software from SAP AG. The German company's
software already has been the focus of high-profile
installation problems at other major companies, but
Grainger wouldn't blame SAP. "We don't think it's their
system," said a spokeswoman, who contended the
financially damaging lapses are simply born out of the
daunting complexity of the installation process. ERP
software helps knit together a company's
manufacturing-related processes, purchasing and
inventory management, as well as order-taking and
finance-management functions.

Putting such an oversight system in place at a major
company is expensive and technically challenging, and
Grainger isn't the only company to run into trouble in
the
course of installing such software. In September,
Hershey Foods Corp. said problems with a $112 million
system that used software from SAP and other providers
had delayed its processing of customer orders, costing
it
sales during Halloween. Whirlpool Corp. subsequently
disclosed problems with its newly installed SAP-based
ERP package as a reason for a series of shipment
delays.

SAP is by far the leading player in the ERP-software
market, with other players including Oracle Systems
Corp., PeopleSoft Inc. and the Netherlands's Baan AG. A
spokeswoman for the German company's U.S. unit, SAP
America Inc., Newton Square, Pa., said focusing on
occasional difficulties in the complex installations
ignores the company's numerous problem-free
implementations, at major companies such as
Colgate-Palmolive Co. and Reebok International Ltd.

SAP's U.S. unit said a special team has been deployed
to
help Grainger "resolve its challenges in optimizing the
new enterprise-software solution." Officials made a
point of noting that the implementation "includes
products and services from other leading technology
providers," including hardware provider Sun
Microsystems Inc. and database provider Oracle.

WHOOPS! Made a mistake. Prior to the announcement the stock closed
at 44.375. After the announcement, it closed down at 43.56. Not
much of a drop.

The day after the market absorbed the news about the computer chaos
... and that fourth-quarter earnings could be as much as 45 percent
LESS than estimates ... the stock price starts to skyrocket ...
UP!!

Because of this press release ....

Grainger Separates its Internet Commerce Businesses

Promotes Executives To Run Grainger.Com and Orderzone.Com

CHICAGO, Jan. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- As a result of the explosive growth
in its Internet Commerce business, W.W. Grainger,
Inc. has separated it into three distinct units. James T. Ryan, a
nineteen-year veteran of the Company, becomes President of
Grainger.com. Daniel Hamburger, previously President of Grainger
Internet Commerce, becomes President of
OrderZone.com. In addition, the Company has hired Robert S. Wasserman
to become Vice President, Grainger Internet
Commerce, and to head up the Grainger auction site.

Grainger Group President Donald Bielinski said, "After growing at the
breakneck pace we did in 1999, it became clear that
we needed to separate the businesses to continue to provide focus,
speed and agility for 2000 and beyond. I am excited about
the opportunities these businesses offer Grainger and I am confident
that the management talent we have in place in
Grainger's digital businesses will allow us to grow still faster."

Grainger Internet Commerce sales grew by more than 650 percent last
year. The run rate for the month of December was
$200 million as the business ended just over $100 million for the
year. Grainger.com, the original web site, offers customers
more than 220,000 different products that Grainger carries-well beyond
the 80,000 products in the catalog. OrderZone.com,
launched in May 1999, allows small and medium size customers to order
from Grainger as well as five other suppliers of
electronic parts, lab safety supplies, office supplies, laboratory
equipment and supplies and uniforms. Grainger Auction,
launched in November, provides customers with discontinued inventory
they can buy through an auction process. Because of
the different approaches, the Company felt dedicating executives to
each specific business proposition would enhance the
growth rate. In addition, Grainger launched another web site,
FindMRO.com, in November to source products not typically
used by a customer. FindMRO is not affected by these moves.

Ryan, 41, has most recently been Vice President, Information Services,
for W.W. Grainger, Inc. He joined Grainger in 1980
and has served in product management and as president of Grainger
Parts. He is a graduate of Miami University as well as
DePaul University, where he received his MBA.

Hamburger, 36, joined Grainger in October 1998 as President, Grainger
Internet Commerce. Under Hamburger, the sales
have grown from $13.5 million in 1998 to $102 million in 1999. Prior
to joining Grainger, Hamburger started and ran the
Internet Services Group of Experian/Metromail. He also was a
consultant with Andersen Consulting and Bain & Company.
Hamburger earned a bachelor's and master's degree in Industrial
Engineering from the University of Michigan and an MBA
from Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration.

Wasserman, 40, joins Grainger from Ameritech Corporation where he was
vice president of marketing for Ameritech's
Small Business and Enhanced Business divisions. Prior to Ameritech, he
worked at AT&T. Wasserman graduated in 1981
from the University of Michigan with a bachelor's degree in business
administration.

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE: GWW), with 1998 sales of $4.3 billion, is
the leading North American provider of
maintenance, repair and operating (MRO) supplies, services and related
information to businesses and institutions. GWW
shares are traded on the New York and Chicago stock exchanges. For
more information, visit Grainger on-line at
www.grainger.com .

Cheryl - (and anyone else interested) - I tried to cut and paste but
it didn't work. I never TOUCHED a computer until 1 year ago. I can't
figure out how to do it - maybe tomorrow. If anyone wants to email
with with suggestions how to do it I'll try harder!

I have been lurking on this mailing list since it was first
established. I haven't submitted until now because I felt I didn't
have anything concrete to report. Well, this morning, that changed.

What I'm reporting on is coming directly from the EDI group for the
company which I work for. I'll admit that I've only heard several
minutes of details ... but, from those scant few moments, I've decided
that I've got something worthwhile to report.

This company with "more than $3 billion in annual sales" (quote taken
from their website) has halted ALL ELCTRONIC COMMERCE due to Y2k
problems. I work in my companies E-Commerce Department (as a
developer) and over heard our EDI guy talking about this just this
morning. He's pissed because they (Grainger) aren't telling anyone.

From what I've gathered, via only several minutes of discussions, is
that their EDI came crashing to a halt and isn't projected to be up
and functioning until SECOND QUARTER!!! I haven't heard anything about
simple web orders or such ... just the EDI spin. I'll keep listening
and pass along any further information.

================

We've had a number of reports regarding problems with EDI. This is
getting really interestin